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R Carel

Publications and source records attributed to R Carel.

16 recordsLinked to original sources
PubMed2003

The relationship between occupational psychological stress and female fertility.

OBJECTIVE: To investigate the association between occupational psychological stress and female fertility. METHODS: This was a case-control study including consecutive working female patients attending fertility and in vitro fertilization clinics in the Soroka University Medical Center. We compared occupational stress between 64 working patients who had attended the clinics due to female infertility (case group) and 106 working patients who had attended the clinics due to their partner's reproductive impairment (control group). RESULTS: Patients from the female infertility group were older (31.9 +/- 6.2 versus 30.2 +/- 4.6, P = 0.047) and tended to participate more in sporting activity [23.4 versus 10.4%, odds ratio (OR) = 2.6, 95% confidence interval (CI) = 1.05-6.73, P = 0.022] as compared with patients from the male infertility group. Patients from the case group tended to work more weekly hours as compared with the controls (33.6 +/- 16.8 versus 26.9 +/- 17.4, P = 0.028). High reliability was found, as demonstrated by Cronbach's alpha of 0.81-0.90 for the four burnout parameters. Patients from the female infertility group had significantly lower listlessness scores as compared with the control group, using the Mann-Whitney test (2.6 +/- 1.1 versus 3.1 +/- 1.2, P = 0.013). CONCLUSIONS: Patients admitted due to female infertility tended to have lower listlessness scores as compared with patients admitted due to their partner's infertility problem. No significant association was found between other burnout, job strain and job satisfaction scores and women's fertility status.

Adult↗
PubMed2000

Comparison of industrial hygienists' exposure evaluations for an epidemiologic study.

OBJECTIVES: A study was conducted to determine what level of information is required by industrial hygienists before they can develop exposure estimates comparable with those developed from a more in-depth evaluation. METHODS: Three industrial hygienists evaluated formaldehyde exposures of 300 jobs selected from an earlier epidemiologic study. The jobs were evaluated over the following 6 cycles: (i) job title and industry; (ii) job title, industry, dates; (iii) job and department title and industry; (iv) cycle 3 information with dates; (v) cycle 3 information with a plant report; and (vi) job and department title, industry, dates, and the report. Each hygienist assigned jobs to 1 of 4 exposure categories, which were compared with the categories in the original epidemiologic study. RESULTS: Overall, the mean differences between the hygienists' evaluations and the standard, although small, changed little over the cycles. The kappa statistic was poor to moderate for all the cycles, but the agreement was greater than expected due to chance. There was moderate improvement in overall agreement over the cycles using the weighted kappa statistic, but little improvement in the intraclass correlation coefficients of the hygienists' evaluations, which ranged from 0.4 to 0.5. Department information improved the agreement with the standard by 5--10%, but dates did not the improve agreement. There were some differences by type of plant, job function, exposure level, and date of the estimate. Using a hypothetical exposure-response scenario, this level of misclassification would have resulted in missing an association. CONCLUSIONS: Although there was slight improvement with increasing levels of information, these findings suggest that the subjective categorical assessment of exposures by industrial hygienists will not produce exposure estimates comparable to more in-depth evaluations of exposure.

Epidemiologic Methods↗
PubMed1999

Case-referent study on occupational risk factors for bladder cancer in southern Israel.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the possible association between occupational exposures (risk factors) and male bladder cancer in the Negev region (southern Israel) to enable preventive strategies to be applied. METHODS: A total of 92 male bladder cancer patients, diagnosed at a regional medical center between 1989 and 1993, were studied by interview and compared with 92 males without oncological disease after matching by age and country of origin. A special questionnaire was developed to gather information on demography, life-time occupational history, smoking habits, coffee consumption, and health status. Statistical analysis of the case-referent data was done using the SPSS-5 package for performance of the chi-square test, conditional logistic regression, and multiple classification analysis. RESULTS: Significant associations were found between bladder cancer occurrence and (1) three different groups of occupational exposures [a - solvents (P = 0.002, OR not computed due to the lack of exposed persons among referents), b - dusts (P = 0. 02; OR = 4.67), and c - exposure to multiple chemicals (P < 0.001, OR = 6.25); (2) nephrolithiasis (P = 0.02, OR = 11.00); and (3) cigarette smoking (P = 0.01, OR = 1.87). CONCLUSIONS: Certain types of occupational exposure, different from that to aromatic amines and dyes, may be considered as contributing factors in the epidemiology of bladder cancer. Better identification of these chemicals and the work processes where they are used may help in abating such exposures, thus leading to a reduction in the risk for this relatively common cancer.

Adult↗
PubMed1999

[Evaluation of clinical findings in occupational health examinations].

Findings in occupational health examinations of a regional service are analyzed. The service provides pre-employment, surveillance and work-capacity evaluations for about 150,000 workers from many types of work-sites and occupations. The average number of pre-employment examinations (during 1993-97) was 4,800/year, and there were relevant pathological findings in about 6.6%. Most findings involved the respiratory (11%) and cardiovascular systems (10%) or eyes (10%). The average annual number of surveillance system examinations was 10,750. There were relevant findings in about 16%, mainly of the respiratory system (17%) and noise-induced hearing damage (about 80%). Work-capacity examinations constituted about 35% of the work-load (9,250 examinees/year). In 53% a significant health problem affecting an individual's job performance was identified. Pathological findings were found in the musculoskeletal (21%), cardiovascular (7.5%), respiratory (3%), and neurological systems (2%). Occupational health examinations can identify areas in which prevention and intervention or cooperation with other medical specialties are indicated, as well as specific topics requiring further training of occupational physicians.

Hearing Loss, Noise-Induced↗
PubMed1998

Prevalence of cholelithiasis in non-diabetic haemodialysis and continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis patients.

Haemodialyzed (HD) patients have been found to have an increased bile cholesterol level and an increased saturation index in bile. These changes were markedly enhanced in the presence of a low-protein diet. To evaluate whether such changes influence the prevalence of cholelithiasis in patients with end-stage renal failure, real-time sonography was performed to detect the presence of gallstones (GS) in 54 HD (28 males, 26 females, mean age 52.4 +/- 15.4 years) and 39 continuous ambulatory peritoneal dialysis (CAPD; 22 males, 17 females, mean age 59.1 +/- 14.9 years) patients. No patient had diabetes. The patients' charts were reviewed for the following data: age, sex, primary renal disease, obesity (20% above ideal weight), history suggestive of gallbladder disease or previous cholecystectomy, duration of dialysis, and serum cholesterol levels. Overall, cholelithiasis was documented in 12 of 93 (12.9%) patients, 7 HD and 5 CAPD. When comparing the factors outlined above, no significant difference was found between HD and CAPD patient groups, either with or without cholelithiasis. Gallbladder disease was asymptomatic in all except 1 patient who required cholecystectomy. Using a healthy control group consisting of local age- and sex-matched inhabitants, GS were found in 8 of 134 (6%) of them (p > 0.05). We conclude that the prevalence rate of GS in our dialysis population (HD and CAPD) is similar to that of a local general population following a western-style diet, irrespective of dialysis mode.

Aged↗
PubMed1994

Serum 17-beta-estradiol and testosterone levels in asymptomatic hyperuricaemic men.

Low levels of oestrogen, FSH and LH in serum have been reported in patients with gout. The mechanism by which sex hormones affect the development of gout is unknown, but some investigators believe that it is related to the influence of oestrogens on serum uric acid levels. We studied the relationship between serum uric acid and 17 beta oestradiol (ES) levels in asymptomatic hyperuricaemic (ASH) men in order to test the hypothesis that low ES levels are associated with hyperuricaemia. Thirty-eight men with asymptomatic hyperuricaemia (ASH) were selected from a population of healthy individuals undergoing periodical multiphasic health examinations. After adjusting for the differences in albumin levels between the two groups, no significant difference in serum ES level was found. The serum testosterone levels were similar in both groups. These findings suggest that there is no difference in the sex hormone profiles between asymptomatic hyperuricaemic and normouricaemic men.

Adult↗
PubMed1992

Spermatogenesis and reproductive performance following human accidental exposure to bromine vapor.

The present study was undertaken to evaluate spermatogenesis and reproductive performance among 8 men and their spouses following accidental exposure to bromine vapor. Of the three cases with oligo-terato-asthenozoospermia (OTA), one had been diagnosed prior to and unrelated to the event. Mild OTA and unimpaired reproductive performance characterized the other two cases. Plasma levels of the follicle stimulating hormone and luteinizing hormone were normal in all men. One first-trimester abortion and one late abortion (due to chorioamnionitis) occurred among the 5 pregnancies conceived shortly after the accident. Results of the present study suggest a mild degree of spermatogenic suppression and impaired reproductive performance following paternal exposure to bromine vapor during the above described accident. However, due to the small size of the study cohort, a confidential cause-result linkage could not be established.

Accidents, Occupational↗
PubMed1992

Urine uric acid excretion in patients with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus.

Serum uric acid has been described as being increased in the prediabetic stage of diabetes mellitus and as being decreased in overt diabetes. In this study we compared the serum uric acid levels of patients with insulin-dependent diabetes mellitus (IDDM) to those of controls matched for sex, age and ethnic origin. Also the correlation between serum uric acid levels and the fractional excretion of uric acid in IDDM patients was investigated, as well as the correlation between glycosuria and the fractional excretion of uric acid. The mean serum uric acid was lower in IDDM patients than in normal controls (4.0 +/- 1.3 vs. 4.3 +/- 1.3 mg/100 ml; p less than 0.03), mainly due to significantly lower levels in male and Ashkenazi IDDM patients, as compared to their respective controls. The fractional excretion of uric acid was found to be elevated in IDDM patients: 13.0 +/- 8.6% (mean +/- SD). A significant negative correlation was found between serum uric acid levels and the fractional excretion of uric acid in IDDM patients (p less than 0.001), although not when the males were examined separately. We found no correlation between the fractional excretion of uric acid and the degree of glycosuria in IDDM patients. In addition, the prevalence of hypouricemia (serum uric acid less than 2.5 mg%) was the same in IDDM patients and controls.

Adult↗
PubMed1991

Inflammation of the visceral pleura, a nonspecific asbestos-related pleural reaction: chest radiograph and computed tomograph correlation.

Nonspecific pleuritis, i.e., inflammation of the visceral pleura, is recognized by the presence of pleural strands on the routine posteroanterior chest radiograph. The computed tomograph counterparts of these strands are seen as interlobular septal intrusions and lenticular or wedge-shaped subpleural opacities. The pleural reaction is nonspecific and may be found with asbestos exposure, traumatic hemorrhagic effusions, pulmonary embolism, viral pleurisy, malignant pleural effusions, and lupus or rheumatoid effusions. The asbestos-related pleural changes may be found alone or in association with parietal pleural plaque formation or with asbestotic lung fibrosis.

Aged↗
PubMed1989

The prevalence of hypertension, ischaemic heart disease and diabetes in traumatic spinal cord injured patients and amputees.

The clinical impression that spinal cord injured and traumatic lower limb amputees are more prone to develop degenerative diseases was investigated by comparing the prevalence of hypertension, ischaemic heart disease, and diabetes mellitus in these two patient groups with the prevalence of these diseases among a group of healthy age-matched controls. Seventy seven spinal cord injured patients and 53 amputees fulfilled the criteria for inclusion in this study. Our results show a significant increased incidence of hypertension and ischaemic heart disease among those with spinal cord injuries compared with their controls; and among the amputees, a significant increased incidence of ischaemic heart disease and of diabetes mellitus.

Adult↗